Bangalore, Mar 3 (IANS): Corruption at the political level may never end in Karnataka where the scale of alleged graft in the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has numbed people. But do they have something to cheer about? Time-bound government services from April 2 aimed at eliminating bribery.

The ambitious, though overdue, step aimed at ending corruption at lower levels of the government has already begun modestly at five places, not as a test case but to get feedback to finetune the measure for statewide introduction from next month.

The bribe-free services number 151 and will be managed by 11 government departments.

The services include the issue of birth and death certificates, extracts of khata (land records), driving licences, licences for business, drinking water and electricity connections, certificates for caste and age, and identity cards to senior citizens.

At present all these services are available for a price - a bribe fixed by the official concerned depending on the urgency.

Bribe-free services were launched March 1 at Puttur in Dakshina Kannada on the west coast, Aurad in Bidar and Dharwad, both in north Karnataka, Chitradurga in the central part of the state and Jayanagar in south Bangalore.

The government is on a "mission-mode" to implement the bribe-free and time-bound official service to the people, Law Minister S. Suresh Kumar said at the launch of the 'Karnataka Guarantee of Services to Citizens Act, 2011,' at Jayanagar.

The government departments handling these services are those rated by people among the most corrupt - transport, revenue, food and civil supplies, rural and panchayat raj, home, education, health and family welfare, labour, women and child welfare and finance.

The Guarantee of Services to Citizens Act will hopefully end the era of 'Kai bechchage maadbeku', Kannada for palm-greasing, which a majority of the over 61 million population of this southern state had become accustomed to.

Officials will be held accountable for providing the services on time or 'Sakala' (the Kannada word for on time), which is also the slogan adopted by the government to popularise the programme.

The time fixed for various services ranges from three working days for birth/death certificates where data is available in e-format or otherwise in seven working days to 30 days for sanction of a building plan for a single-storey residence.

Officials who fail to meet deadlines will pay the applicant Rs.20 per day for each day delay.

If the service cannot be provided within the set timeframe, the official need not pay the fine but will have to give the reasons in writing, which will help the applicant take it up with the higher authorities.

The final or the appellate authority in the department will have to dispose of the case in 30 or 45 days. If in a year any official is found to have faulted 25 times in providing the service, he/she will face disciplinary action and will be declared 'habitual offenders'.

The government will reward officials rendering prompt service.

A helpline number (080-44554455), an e-mail address (kgsc@nic.in) and a website, www.kgsc.kar.nic.in, are also in place to help people to ensure they get the promised services on time.

One may say this is what governments are for and what is there to cheer about it? Given the situation in Karnataka, the state that pioneered the institution of Lokayukta or ombudsman as far back as 1986, even a small step to end bribery raj is a major event to rejoice.

And for the BJP, it certainly should mark a turning point for the better, if it effectively implements the programme, as the alleged misdeeds of its first chief minister in the state B.S. Yeddyurappa, several of his colleagues and a dozen party legislators have earned it the "most corrupt regime" tag.